I&B ministry takes strict measures to curb film piracy

With the film industry facing losses up to Rs. 20,000 crore every year owing to piracy, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has taken strong measures to combat the practice.

After the Parliament passed the Cinematograph (Amendment) Act, 1952 during this year's Monsoon Session, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has established an institutional mechanism of Nodal Officers to receive complaints against piracy and direct the intermediaries to take down pirated content on digital platforms.

There is currently no institutional framework in place to directly take action on pirated filmic content other than legal action under the Copyright Act and the IPC. Piracy has increased due to the expansion of the internet and the desire of practically everyone to consume filmic content for free. The foregoing step would empower the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to take immediate action in cases of piracy, providing relief to the business.

Speaking about the Bill in Parliament, Union Minister Anurag Thakur stated that the Act aimed to curb film piracy, a measure which has been a long-standing demand of the film industry. The Act was amended after 40 years to incorporate provisions against film piracy, including digital piracy after the last significant amendments were made in 1984. The amendment includes strict punishment of minimum 3 months imprisonment and a fine of Rs 3 lakh which can be extended up to 3 years imprisonment and a fine upto 5 per cent of the audited gross production cost.

On the appointment of nodal officers for the takedown of pirated content, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said, "The content creator spends a lot of time and energy making good content; people who are involved in the piracy take away that content and exhibit it in the halls and on online platforms. The annual loss to the industry is Rs 20 to Rs 25 thousand crores. Now the government has taken some steps by passing the Cinematograph Amendment Bill 2023 in Parliament. Today we have appointed nodal officers in the Ministry and in the CBFC Mumbai office and regional offices. The government has done away with the need to renew film licenses every ten years and made them last a lifetime. If we look at the piracy issue, now they could be fined from Rs 3 lakh to five per cent of the gross audited value of production."

Who can apply? An original copyright holder or anybody authorised by them for this purpose can apply to the Nodal Officer to have pirated content removed. If a complaint is filed by someone who does not have the copyright or is not authorised by the copyright holder, the Nodal Officer may hold hearings to determine the validity of the complaint before giving directives.

The digital platform will be required by law to remove such internet links carrying pirated content within 48 hours of obtaining instructions from the Nodal Officer.

The Cinematograph (Amendment) Act, 2023 (12 of 2023) passed by the Parliament in the Monsoon Session of 2023 addressed the issues relating to film certification, including the issue of unauthorized recording and exhibition of films and film piracy by transmission of unauthorized copies on the internet and imposes strict penalties for piracy. These amendments are in harmony with the existing laws that address the issue of film piracy, viz. the Copyright Act, 1957 and the Information Technology Act (IT) 2000.